Mason zeroed in as Flyers return to practice

VOORHEES -- Skin was still peeling on Steve Mason's nose from the sun he got in the Bahamas. Instead of sunscreen, it was protected by a goalie mask for the first time in nearly two weeks.

Mason had spent the first part of his break down south with some friends before spending some time with family in his hometown of Oakville, Ontario.

Wednesday was a splash of reality as the Flyers resumed practicing for the first time since the NHL broke its schedule for the Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

"This week of practice is going to be extremely important to make sure we’re utilizing the time that we have," the goalie said. "Today was a good first step."

It was a lot of skating drills, like most other practices under Craig Berube this season. But for Mason, this week will be a bit different. If the Flyers are going to put a run together to not only get back to the playoffs, but make noise in the postseason as well, Mason will be a huge reason why.

He has won four of his last five starts, save for a loss in Anaheim in which he allowed four goals. In those four wins, he has a goals-against average of 0.75 and a save percentage of .977 with a pair of shutouts. On the season, he has a 2.49 goals-against average and .918 save percentage.

Now is go time and Mason says he's ready.

"I just look forward to the challenge," he said. "These are the times, as a player, you look forward to. It’s exciting being in a playoff race, being in the playoffs right now, but there’s the understanding that if we go on a two-game slide, we’re right out of the playoffs again. It’s an exciting thing to be a part of."

When Mason has been at his best this season, it's been because of his preparation. The more time he's able to spend on the ice with goalie coach Jeff Reese, the better. When he's struggled, it's been because he's fallen into bad habits that are tough to correct if there's no practice time to monitor them.

This week will be good for that.

"It’s almost like a little mini training camp," Mason said. "It’s not too often that you have a full week of practice and a lot of goalie-specific time for me and Reeser to work with. There’s things that we talked about before the break that we want to continue working on. This is the perfect opportunity for it."

In the final 23 regular-season games of the season, Mason figures to get the bulk of the starts.

Of course, he's not the only player on the ice. The Flyers are practicing to play well in front of him.

"I would say the most important part of our team game is support – making sure we have guys in the right positions to make plays and make the right decisions," defenseman Braydon Coburn said. "If you’re not, it really breaks down to instead of being a team game, an individual game where guys are in position not to support each other and not have a lot of ice to skate."

All 30 NHL teams are trying to put together a run and the Flyers are no different. For the goalie and the skaters, it's not a second training camp. It's a quick refresher meant to be a sprint into the home stretch of the schedule.

"This week is gonna go by pretty quick," Coburn said. "We need to make sure we’re getting back up to speed and where we need to be and ready for the most important part of the season here."